Robot Fabrication In Architecture RobArch 2012

Roboticists, the architects of the world need your help! Come to Rob|Arch 2012 and help them build the worlds structures. Take a look at this sample video, starting around 1:55.

(From Rob|Arch 2012)

Brell-Cokcan and Braumann are co-founders of the Association for Robots in Architecture and organizers of the Rob|Arch 2012 conference, being held in Vienna on Dec. 17 and 18. Over this past weekend they ran a series of workshops in Vienna, Graz, Zürich, Rotterdam, and Stuttgart to expose architects and designers to the possibilities of utilizing this technology. “We try create a platform that shows the innovative uses of robotic fabrication in the creative industry, and brings together members of industry and academia, as well as architects, artists, and designers,” says Braumann.

Unlike a lot of the machines involved in industrial production, robot arms are generalists. They can be easily reconfigured to do different tasks via software and changing the attachments on the end of the arm. This is why they are ideal for assembly-line work where the shape of the product changes frequently (as with annually changing car models) and, Brell-Cokcan and Braumann say, why they are ideal for architecture. In fact, because architecture generally involves tolerances measured in millimeters or even centimeters — units robotic arms work in — the hyper-precision of tools like 5-axis CNC machines are generally wasted when used for building purposes...

Beyond the conference and workshops, the Association for Robots in Architecture has been working to make robots more accessible by creating tools to help architects get started. They recently released KUKA|prc in order to encourage the use of robots in architecture. KUKA|prc is a parametric robot controller plugin for Grasshopper, a visual programming tool that works inside the architectural-standard 3-D CAD modeler software Rhinoceros.

Science fiction fans recall the many creative visions of robots in the 1985 film Runaway, by Michael Crichton. Take a look at the construction robots in the trailer below.